Track and Field Wraps Up Indoor Season

March 8, 1999

CLEMSON MEN PLACE THIRD AT NATIONAL CHAMPIONSHIPS The Clemson men’s indoor track and field team placed third with 28 points at the NCAA Championships in Indianapolis on Saturday. Arkansas won the meet with 65 points, followed by Stanford with 42.50 points. Clemson freshman Ato Modibo of Beltsville, MD, won the national championship in the 400m, becoming the youngest national champion in Clemson history. The Tigers’ 4x400m relay team of junior Charles Allen, senior Kenny Franklin, senior Davidson Gill and Modibo placed first with a time of 3:07.80, the fastest collegiate time in the nation this season. All four athletes earned All-America honors at the meet.

Modibo was even with Derrick Brew of Louisiana State at 21.76 crossing the halfway point of the 400m race. He gained the lead along the backstretch and held on for the win with a time of 46.11. Modibo entered the race holding the nation’s fastest time this season, 46.00, which he posted to win the ACC Championship.

“I had faith that I could go out and do my best,” said Modibo, who became the eighth individual national champion in Clemson men’s track and field history and the Tigers’ second national champion indoors in the 400m. “I had my teammates behind me.” Following the relay victory Allen said, “We said a prayer before the race and then did our best.”

The 4x400m relay team was just the second Clemson relay team to win a national championship. The 4x800m relay team of Mike Radziwinski, Philip Greyling, Dave Wittman and Terrance Herrington won the indoor championship in 1990. In other competition on Saturday, junior Bryan Williams placed 12th in the triple jump after recording a mark of 15.24.

“This was an unbelievable finish,” said Clemson head men’s track coach Bob Pollock following the meet. “I’m so proud of what these guys have done this season. Our coaching staff did a great job in preparing the team. Certainly this capped off an exciting indoor season for 1999.”

Junior Shawn Crawford and sophomore Sultan Tucker earned All-America honors on Friday. Crawford, the defending national champion in the 200m, placed fourth in the event with a time of 20.85. Crawford had the third-fastest qualifying time at 21.12. Sophomore Sultan Tucker placed sixth in the 60m hurdles, running a time of 7.86 in the finals after qualifying with a time of 7.93 in the preliminaries.

Three members of the Clemson women’s team competed on Friday. Senior Nikkie Bouyer placed ninth with a time of 8.30 in the preliminaries of the 60m hurdles, tying her best time of the season. Junior Shekera Weston placed ninth in the preliminaries of the 400m with a time of 54.23. Both Bouyer and Weston failed to qualify for the finals, but earned All-American honors for finishing among the top eight Americans in their respective events. Sophomore Terri Robinson tied for 11th place in the long jump competition with a mark of 19’4 1/4″.

“Overall, I’m very pleased with the performances of our people,” said Clemson head women’s track and field coach Ron Garner. “Bouyer entered the meet ranked 17th, the last person to qualify, and narrowly missed making the finals by .01 of a second. Robinson entered the meet tied at 16th and improved to 11th. She competed very well in her first trip to the NCAA Championships. My only disappointment is for the athletes because I know they wanted to advance to the finals. We will take these experiences and look forward to building in the outdoor season.”

Sophomore Jamine Moton competed for the women’s team in the second day of the meet, placing 18th in the shot put with a throw of 45’9 3/4″. “Jamine has had a very successful indoor season,” said Garner. “I’m very proud of the job she’s done and how she has competed for the team. Since arriving on Wednesday she has done everything I’ve asked of her. We are going to work together in the outdoor season to develop her into a champion.”

CLEMSON MEN WIN THIRD-STRAIGHT ACC CHAMPIONSHIP The Clemson men’s track team won the ACC Indoor Track and Field Championship with 162 points Saturday in Blacksburg, setting a new school record for points scored at the indoor meet. The win was the Tigers’ third-straight and their seventh in the 1990s. Clemson has won nine ACC Indoor Championships overall and eight under head coach Bob Pollock. North Carolina placed second with 112.50 points, and N.C. State was third with 108 points.

Shawn Crawford was honored as the meet MVP, and Ato Modibo earned Freshman of the Year honors. Pollock was chosen Coach of the Year for the 15th time.

The Tigers had one NCAA automatic qualifier at the meet and six provisional qualifiers. Clemson won the ACC Championship in nine events and had 17 all-ACC selections. Junior Bryan Williams set a new school record in the triple jump (52’5 1/4″), and sophomore Sultan Tucker tied the ACC record in the 60m hurdles (7.79).

The team was led in scoring by Crawford with 20 points, followed by Modibo with 18 1/2 points and Williams with 16 points. Twenty-one out of Clemson’s 28 athletes at the meet scored points, and the freshman class led the Tigers with 55 points.

“It’s a tremendous feeling winning the 1999 championship and even more to have a three-peat,” said Pollock following the win. “I am really proud of our guys. This meet probably this has to go down as one of the best track performances in the history of Clemson and the ACC. We won nine out of 16 events overall and ended up with 12 ACC Champions, including the four members of our relay team. This is probably one of the greatest ACC performances in Clemson’s history. I have to give credit to my assistants, Ralph White and Aaron James, for making sure we were well-prepared for the meet. Individually we had several national qualifiers, including Shawn Crawford in the 60m and the 200m, Sultan Tucker in the 60m hurdles, Ato Modibo in the 400m and our 4x400m relay team. In the field events Doug Ameigh qualified in the high jump and Bryan Williams in the triple jump.”

Clemson posted wins in seven of eight running events on Saturday. Tucker won the 60m hurdles, and freshman Todd Matthews was third in the event with a time of 7.91. Crawford won the 60m and the 200m. He won the championship in the 60m for the second-consecutive season, posting a time of 6.77. In the 60m, senior Kenny Franklin was fourth with a time of 6.84, and junior Charles Allen finished eighth with a time of 6.95.

The Tigers had five athletes score in the 200m. Crawford won the ACC Championship with an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 20.81. Freshman Ato Modibo was third with a time of 21.25, followed by Franklin in fourth at 21.31. Freshman Anthony Moorman placed fifth with a time of 21.31, and Allen was eighth at 21.64.

In the 400m, Modibo won the championship with an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 46.00. Clemson senior Davidson Gill won the 800m in 1:52.46, and Tiger senior Esteban Diaz won the mile with a time of 4:10.20. Freshman Ryan Demers was seventh in the mile with a time of 4:14.33. Clemson’s 4x400m relay team of Allen, Franklin, Gill and Modibo won the championship with a provisional time of 3:09.66.

In the field events on Saturday, Clemson freshman Doug Ameigh won the high jump with a provisional qualifying jump of 7’1 1/2″, his highest of the season. Williams was third with a jump of 6’10 3/4″, followed by freshman Mark Mirabito in fourth with a jump of 6’8 3/4″.

Williams won the triple jump , and sophomore Tony Lloyd was third with a mark of 50′ 3/4″. Sophomore Ben Hess placed fourth in the pole vault with a jump of 15’7, and freshman Keith Rzewuski was eighth with a throw of 50’1 1/2″ in the weight throw.

In Friday’s action, Rzewuski was fourth in the shot put competition with a throw of 53’7″, and senior Tom Hopkins was seventh in the event with a throw of 49’10 1/2″. Freshman Mark Jellison was eighth in the long jump with a mark of 23’5 1/2″.

Senior Joe Gibson placed third in the finals of the 5,000m with a time of 14:26.14, and the Tiger team of Mike Connelly, Gill, Shaun Murphy and Demers placed fourth with a time of 10:06.99 in the distance medley relay. The time was Clemson’s best of the season by 15 seconds.

CLEMSON WOMEN PLACE SECOND AT ACC CHAMPIONSHIPS The Clemson women’s track and field team placed second with 100 points at the ACC Indoor Track & Field Championship Saturday in Blacksburg. North Carolina won the meet with 121 points, giving the Tar Heels’ their seventh-straight championship.

“I’m very pleased with the way our team performed this weekend,” said head coach Ron Garner following the meet. “I believe as an entire group, we learned how to be champions. We put ourselves in the position to contend for the title on Friday and followed up with outstanding performances throughout Saturday. There were a few glitches today, but I take credit for those as head coach.

“We had outstanding performances from Shekera Weston in both the 200m and 400m, Erin Nett and Mandy McLane in the pole vault, Nikkie Bouyer in the 60m hurdles and Jamine Moton in the shot put. Julianne Littmann performed superbly in the 800m and mile, then competed again in the 3000m run. Our distance medley relay exemplified what I want Clemson to be known as a true competitor. Not one of the individuals on the relay were in the top 15 in the conference, yet as a group they performed to finish third,” said Garner.

Clemson junior Shekera Weston won the ACC Championship in the 200m and 400m, recording provisional qualifying times in both events. Weston recorded a time of 23.62 in the 200m, and senior Nikkie Bouyer was fifth with a time of 24.40. Weston won the 400m in 53.36.

In the 60m hurdles, Bouyer placed second with a provisional qualifying time of 8.30, and freshman Kyana Elder finished fifth with a time of 8.54. Sophomore Terri Robinson was fifth in the 60m, recording a time of 7.61, while sophomore Simone Brown placed seventh with a time of 7.67.

Senior Julianne Littmann led all Clemson finishers in the 800m and mile, placing third in both events. Littmann posted a time of 2:14.26 in the 800m, and Clemson senior Brantley Epps was eighth with a time of 2:20.14. Littmann ran a 4:55.08 in the mile, and Epps was ninth with a time of 5:03.17. Junior Beth Ahern was fifth in the 3,000m with a time of 10:03.87.

In the field events on Friday, Clemson took first and second place in the pole vault and fist place in the shot put. Freshman Erin Nett won the pole vault, setting a new ACC meet record with an NCAA provisional mark of 11’6 1/4″. She was chosen ACC Freshman of the Year. Sophomore Mandy McLane placed second in the event after clearing the same height on a later jump. Sophomore Jamine Moton won the shot put with a provisional qualifying mark of 29’1 1/2″.

Sophomore Terri Robinson placed seventh in the long jump with a mark of 19’0″, and sophomore Dana Copeland tied for seventh with a jump of 5’4 1/4″ in the high jump competition.

The top two athletes in each event earn all-ACC honors.

WOMEN AMONG TOP IN ACC The Clemson women’s track and field team has several athletes ranked among the leaders in the ACC, including sophomore Shekera Weston, who leads the conference in the 400m dash (53.36), and is second in the 60m (7.34) and in the 200m (23.62).

The Tigers lead the league in three of the six field events. Freshman Erin Nett from Bel Air, MD, leads the conference in the pole vault after setting a new ACC record of 11’11 3/4″, and sophomore Mandy McLane ranks second in the pole vault with a mark of 11’6 1/2″. Sophomore Jamine Moton, the defending ACC outdoor shot put champion, leads the league in the weight throw (57’5 3/4″) and the shot put (49’1 1/2″). In the long jump, Terri Robinson is third at 20’5 1/4″.

Among the top runners in the 60m dash are sophomores Simone Brown, who ranks sixth with a time of 7.51, and Robinson, who is seventh at 7.53. Freshman Kyana Elder of Atlanta ranks sixth in the 60m hurdles with a time of 8.54. Senior Nikkie Bouyer ranks second in the ACC in the 60m hurdles (8.30), is sixth in the 200m (24.20) and is ninth in the 60m (7.60).

In the distance events, junior Beth Ahern ranks seventh in the 5000m (17:27.04), and sophomore Erika van Reenan is tenth in the 5000m after recording a time of 17:36.36. Senior Julianne Littmann ranks fourth with a time of 2:12.49 in the 800m and is sixth in the conference in the mile run with a time of 4:55.08. Senior Brantley Epps is ranked fifth in the 800m with a time of 2:12.79, and is ninth in the mile run (4:56.37). The distance medley relay team of Littmann, Helena Janecic, Stackhouse and Epps is ranked fourth in the ACC with a time of 11:59.82.

MEN AMONG TOP IN ACC The Clemson men’s track and field team, 1999 ACC Indoor Champions, has several athletes ranked among the top-ten in the ACC. Junior Shawn Crawford, the defending national champion in the 200m indoors, leads the conference after recording a time of 20.80. He also leads the conference in the 60m dash with a time of 6.71.

Three freshmen are among the top sprinters in the league. Ato Modibo from Beltsville, MD, ranks first in the league in the 400m (46.00) and is third in the 200m with a time of 21.25. Anthony Moorman from Roselle, IL, ranks fifth in the ACC in the 200m with a time of 21.31. In the 60m hurdles, Todd Matthews of Trenton, NJ, ranks third with a time of 7.91.

Sophomore Sultan Tucker is first in the 60m hurdles (7.75), while senior Kenny Franklin ranks fourth in the 200m (21.31) and eighth in the 60m (6.84). Senior Davidson Gill tops the ACC in the 800m with a time of 1:49.99. Junior Charles Allen ranks third in the 60m (6.80), seventh in the 200m (21.51), and eighth in the 400m (48.16). Clemson is first in the 4x400m relay with a time of 3:09.66.

In the mile run, senior Esteban Diaz ranks sixth with a time of 4:08.63. Senior Joe Gibson is sixth in the 5000m run with a time of 14:26.14. The Clemson distance medley relay team is fifth in the conference at 10:06.99.

In the field events, freshman Doug Ameigh of Washingtonville, PA, leads the league with a mark of 7’1 1/2″ in the high jump. Junior Bryan Williams ranks fifth at 6’10 3/4,” and freshman Mark Mirabito of Liverpool, NY is eighth at 6’8 3/4.” In the long jump, Maull has the fifth-longest mark in the conference (24’7″).

Williams is first in the triple jump at 52’5 1/4″, and sophomore Tony Lloyd ranks third (50’3/4″). Tony Washington is ninth at 48’1 1/4.” Sophomores Ben Hess and Bobby Latham are tied for seventh among ACC athletes in the pole vault at 15’9.”

In the throwing events, freshman Keith Rzewuski of Edison, NJ, is fourth in the shot put (53’7″) and eighth in the 35 lb. weight throw (50’5 1/2″). Senior Tom Hopkins is seventh in the shot put (49’10 1/2″).